The fourth-seeded Jonesport-Beals girls basketball team outlasted No. 5 Schenck 48-43 in a dramatic Class D North regional quarterfinal game on Monday at the Cross Center in Bangor.
The Royals, now 12-7 this season, will play the winner of No. 1 Southern Aroostook and No. 8 Deer Isle-Stonington on Thursday, Feb. 22 at 11:30 a.m. The Wolverines from East Millinocket finished the year at 10-9.
Trailing 23-9 midway through the second quarter, the Wolverines gradually worked their way back into the ballgame, cutting the deficit to just five early in the fourth quarter. Turning to its full court press in crunch time, Schenck used three steals and five points from junior guard Lidia Matarazzo (eight points, six steals on Monday) to cut it to 44-43 with 30 seconds to go.
Maintaining enough poise to close out the game, the Royals’ sophomore guard Mia Mills (15 points) countered with a fast break layup, and later two clutch free throws to stave off the Schenck comeback. Junior guard Brenna Alley (six points) would seal it with two more free throws with two seconds remaining.
Complementing Mills and Alley on Monday were senior guard Rachel Crowley (12 points, two assists, two steals), senior forward Mary McDonald (six points, one assist) and sophomore forward Riley Balicki (five points, seven offensive rebounds).
For Schenck, junior center Mallory Brown had an impressive showing (10 points, two offensive rebounds, three blocks), as did sophomore guard Abigaile Hutchins (eight points, two offensive boards, three steals) and sophomore forward Harlee Sprague (six points, two offensive rebounds, one block).
